They have 15 tanks in total, each representing a specific region if the Pacific Rim. The main tank is home to two whale sharks, the main attraction. You won't realize how big they actually are until they swim right beside you along the wall. I could spend a whole day in there and just watch them swim. It's so relaxing.

The entry fee is 2.300 Yen and they have various kinds of sharks, seals, rays, sea turtles, penguins, whale sharks, dolphins and so on. Right before the exit there is a huge tank in that you can actually pet small sharks and rays. Rays feel kind of slimy while sharks feel more like sandpaper.


It was already dark when we decided to have a walk through the city and visit Osaka's castle. It's beautiful during the night because they highlight the castle from every direction. We shot some photos and spent some time just sitting on a bench, eating ice cream and listening to some japanese band existing of three young students. The singer had a nice voice. I liked her.

Ooo~ Kyoto, beautiful Kyoto! You have so much to explore like the Fushimi Inari Shrine with it's thousands Torii gates. Too bad it's all on a mountain, the sacred Mount Inari to be accurately. If you suck at sports, like we do, you'll have a hard time to reach the top, especially during hot weather but the view is totally worth it!

We took the long mountain trail and made it to the top but like I said before, it's soo exhausting. We saw so many people going all the way back down before reaching the top because they were too tired but I hate giving up halfway so we continued the struggle.

I totally recommend coming here and go hiking all the way to the top. The Torii gates are amazing and you have a nice view from above. Plus the path itself is worth seeing as well. I think it took us about 3 hours to hike to the summit of the mountain and back. If you're too tired then there are some restaurants every now and then where you can sit and rest.

We went on to the Arashiyama Bomboo Forest, which is nice to visit as well. I had no idea how tall bamboo can actually grow. I was impressed.  
The guys chose to hike uphill for about 15 minutes and check out the Monkey Park but my friend and me decided to go to the Tenryui-ji Temple with it's traditional garden instead.


For 500 Yen we could take a nice walk through the giant garden and see the temple. We used the time to take some photos and chill after the long struggle on Mount Inari. There is a pond right in the center with Kois and other fishes inside and there are many sakura trees as well. If you plan to visit in April you can see them blooming.

In the evening we went to Namba to have Okonomiyaki and explore the neighborhood. Since it is said that Osaka is famous for Okonomiyaki we wanted to eat it here and it didn't let us down. It tasted really delicious but to be honest, we had even better ones in Tokyo.

Oh, and if you are a KitKat addict you'll be surprised by the variety of flavors. There are for example Matcha, Sakura, Strawberry Cake, Pumpkin Cheesecake, Orange, Black Honey, Cheese, Whine, Red Beans, Oreo (...)

All in all I can say I would come here again but not in a dormitory but in a single or double room since I had problems to fall and stay asleep.

We didn't do much today because most of the time we spent the day inside the train and on the plane. This is quite exhausting and it made us hungry. This is why we decided to check out the Italian restaurant few buildings next to Sakura Hotel. Too bad I can't remember the name but the cook was kinda funny and talked to us for a short while. So if you have the chance to go there, then do it. It's warm and cozy. Itadakimasu!